The term Big Apple was used in the 1920’s by jazz musicians and people in show business as a way of saying “I’ve made it to New York, I’ve picked the BIG apple from the tree. I’m going to be famous”

What are the 5 boroughs of NYC?

1 Manhattan

2 Brooklyn

3 Queens

4 Bronx

5 Staten Island

A few facts:

Manhattan is a name of an Indian tribe.

Brooklyn and Staten Island are Dutch names.

Queens is named oafter the Queen of England.

The Bronx is named after the Broncks, a Danish family.

The tallest building were the Twin Towers.

New York is the largest city in the States.

New York has the world’s largest subway system.

The Hudson River is named after a man who sailed up the river, looking for a route to the Orient.

A little history:

1624 => about 100 Dutch people came from Holland and settled on the island of Manhattan. They bought the land from the Indians and called it New Amsterdam.

1650 => the town has a population of 1500 who spoke 18 different languages.

1664 => The English took the town over and called it New York, after the duke of York

1785-1790 => New York became the first capital of the newly independent United States of America.

1850 => New York became the most important city in the United States? There were about 550,000 inhabitants.

What is Ellis Island?

On January 1st 1892, an immigration station was opened on a small island called Ellis Island, in New York harbor. For 62 years, more than 12 million immigrants passed through its halls to enter the United States.

The immigrants had to go through various medical inspections. If they had any diseases they were sent back to their country of origin. Most passed the tests and only about 2% were not admitted.

The station was closed in 1954. It is a museum now.

Who was Rockfeller?

John D. Rockfeller (1839-1937) was one of the richest men in America. He initiated the construction of the Rockfeller Center, a real city within the city. It is situated right in the center of Manhattan and 240,000 people work